Israel warns it will stop aid yacht heading for Gaza
Israel has warned its military will "take whatever measures are necessary" to prevent a boat carrying pro-Palestinian activists and humanitarian aid reaching Gaza.
The Madleen yacht is 160 nautical miles from the Gaza Strip and is attempting to challenge Israel's sea blockade around the territory.
Defence Minister Israel Katz said the 12-strong crew, which includes climate protester Greta Thunberg, should turn back and that Israel will act against any attempt to breach the blockade.
The Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) said the vessel, which departed Sicily on Friday, was carrying humanitarian aid and was "prepared for the possibility of an Israeli attack".
Katz said the purpose of Israel's blockade, which has been in place since 2007, was to "prevent the transfer of weapons to Hamas" and was essential to Israel's security as it seeks to destroy the Palestinian armed group Hamas.
He warned in a post on X on Sunday: "I have instructed the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] to act to prevent the 'Madeleine' [sic] hate flotilla from reaching the shores of Gaza - and to take whatever measures are necessary to that end."
Addressing the crew directly, he added: "To the antisemitic Greta and her fellow Hamas propaganda spokespeople, I say clearly: You should turn back - because you will not reach Gaza.
"Israel will act against any attempt to break the blockade or assist terrorist organisations – at sea, in the air, and on land."
The FFC argues the sea blockade is illegal, and characterised the minister's statement as an example of Israel threatening the unlawful use of force against civilians and "attempting to justify that violence with smears".
"We will not be intimidated. The world is watching," FFC press officer Hay Sha Wiya said.
"The Madleen is a civilian vessel, unarmed and sailing in international waters, carrying humanitarian aid and human rights defenders from across the globe... Israel has no right to obstruct our effort to reach Gaza."
The group added that the vessel had earlier experienced temporary signal jamming, causing its location to appear near Jordan.
The Madleen is carrying a symbolic quantity of aid, including rice and baby formula, the group said.
People from Brazil, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Turkey are onboard.
Israeli media say its navy is expected to block the boat before it reaches Gaza.
"We will calmly take control of the ship, bring them to Israel, and deport them abroad that same night," an Israeli official told the Jerusalem Post.
In 2010, Israeli commandos killed 10 people when they boarded Turkish ship Mavi Marmara that was leading an aid flotilla towards Gaza.
Israel recently began to allow limited aid into Gaza after a three-month land blockade, prioritising distribution through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which is backed by Israel and the US but widely condemned by humanitarian groups.
The UN's human rights chief Volker Türk said last week Palestinians were being presented with the "grimmest of choices: die from starvation or risk being killed while trying to access the meagre food that is being made available".
It is almost 20 months since Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to an unprecedented Hamas-led cross-border attack on Israel, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 54,880 people have been killed in Gaza since, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.
Get our flagship newsletter with all the headlines you need to start the day. Sign up here.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Glasgow Times
7 minutes ago
- Glasgow Times
Greta Thunberg deported from Israel after Gaza-bound aid ship seized
In a post on X, Israel's Foreign Ministry shared a photo of Ms Thunberg on a plane, saying that she was heading for France before continuing to Sweden. Adalah, a legal rights group in Israel representing Ms Thunberg and the other activists, said the Swede, two other campaigners and a journalist had agreed to be deported. Other activists refused deportation, were being held in detention and their case was set to be heard by Israeli authorities. Greta Thunberg just departed Israel on a flight to Sweden (via France). — Israel Foreign Ministry (@IsraelMFA) June 10, 2025 Ms Thunberg was one of 12 passengers on board the Madleen, a boat carrying aid destined for people in war-torn Gaza. Israeli naval forces seized the boat early on Monday about 125 miles off Gaza's coast, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the group that organised the journey. The boat, accompanied by Israel's navy, arrived in the Israeli port of Ashdod on Monday evening. The activists said they were protesting against the ongoing war and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Israel says such ships violate its naval blockade of Gaza. Israel's Foreign Ministry portrayed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying on social media that 'the 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel'. Sabine Haddad, a spokeswoman for Israel's Interior Ministry, said the activists who were being deported on Tuesday had waived their right to appear before a judge. Those who did not will face one and will be held for 96 hours before being deported. People wave the Palestinian flag and hold signs in support of Greta Thunberg (Leo Correa/AP) Rima Hassan, a French member of the European Parliament who is of Palestinian descent, was among the volunteers on board. She has been barred from entering Israel because of her opposition to Israeli policies toward the Palestinians. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Tuesday that one of the detained French activists signed an expulsion order and will leave Israel on Tuesday for France. The other five refused. He said all the activists received consular visits. Adalah said that Israel had 'no legal authority' to take over the ship because the group said it was in international waters and it was headed not to Israel but to the 'territorial waters of the state of Palestine'. Amnesty International said Israel was flouting international law with the naval raid and called on Israel to release the activists immediately and unconditionally. 'The arrest of the unarmed activists, who operated in a civilian manner to provide humanitarian aid, amounts to a serious breach of international law,' Adalah said.
The Guardian
7 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Foreign Office staff told to consider resigning after challenging UK policy on Gaza
More than 300 Foreign Office staff have been told to consider resigning after they wrote a letter complaining they feared it had become complicit in Israel's alleged war crimes in Gaza. It is the fourth such internal letter from staff about the offensive in Gaza, which started in October 2023 in response to Hamas's deadly attack on Israel. In their letter of 16 May the staff, from embassies around the world and at various levels of seniority, questioned the UK's continued arms sales and what they called Israel's 'stark … disregard for international law'. The Foreign Office said it had systems for staff to raise concerns and added the government had 'rigorously applied international law' in relation to the war in Gaza. The reply to the letter was sent by the permanent under-secretary, Oliver Robbins, and Nick Dyer, the second most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office. They told the signatories: '[I]f your disagreement with any aspect of government policy or action is profound, your ultimate recourse is to resign from the civil service. This is an honourable course.' The reply did not address the substantive complaints by staff. The letter, first reported by the BBC, said: 'In July 2024, staff expressed concern about Israel's violations of international humanitarian law and potential UK government complicity. In the intervening period, the reality of Israel's disregard for international law has become more stark.' It went on to list the killing by Israeli forces of 15 humanitarian workers in March and Israel's suspension of all aid to Gaza in the same month 'leading many experts and humanitarian organisations to accuse Israel of using starvation as a weapon of war'. It said the UK government's position had contributed to 'the erosion of global norms', citing continued weapons exports and the visit to London in April by Israel's foreign minister, Gideon Sa'ar, 'despite concerns about violations of international law'. The Foreign Office described Sa'ar's visit as private, even though he met the foreign secretary, David Lammy. The staff letter added that 'supported by the Trump administration, the Israeli government has made explicit plans for the forcible transfer of Gaza's population'. In response, Robbins and Dyer said the department welcomed 'healthy challenge' as part of the policymaking process and had already set up a 'bespoke Challenge Board' and regular listening sessions with employees to hear concerns in this policy area. They wrote that staff were entitled to their personal views, but added it 'might be helpful' to 'remind' them of mechanisms available to those uncomfortable with policy. It went on to list a series of ways staff could raise issues, before adding that resignation was an 'ultimate recourse' and 'honourable course' for those with profound disagreements over government policy. '[T]he bargain at the heart of the British civil service is that we sign up to deliver the policies of the government of the day wholeheartedly, within the limits imposed by the law and the civil service code,' it said. The UK government's position is that Israel is 'at risk' of breaching humanitarian law, the threshold for barring arms exports, but says it is for international courts to determine if breaches of international law have occurred, which will not be fully determined for many years. Senior foreign office ministers are due to be challenged in the business select committee over why the government is continuing to sell parts and components to the F-35 programme without placing a condition that the parts are not sent on to Israel. The UK is not selling directly to Israel, and claims it has no option but to supply the parts or see the whole F-35 programme grind to a halt, affecting Nato operations defending Europe. The carve-out of F-35s from the ban on UK arms being sold to Israel, imposed in September, is being tested in the high court by the NGOs Global Legal Action Network and Al-Haq. The Foreign Office in its court submissions, likely to be the subject of cross-examination by the business committee, said it had determined Israel was not committing a genocide in Gaza, which appears to contradict the stance that only the UK courts can make such a ruling. It also said it could not take a position on specific attacks by Israel since it did not have definitive evidence. In September, Lammy announced the suspension of about 30 arms exports licences to Israel, and said the remaining licences were not relevant to the war in Gaza – although the government admits some of the licences allow exports to the Israel Defence Forces. Israel has consistently denied committing war crimes in Gaza, saying its actions are proportionate and necessary to eradicate Hamas, which it says uses hospitals and school premises to protect itself. The former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has gathered the names of 50 MPs backing his call for an independent public inquiry into UK involvement in military operations in Gaza. Corbyn has been among MPs pressing ministers to explain why RAF jets from the UK base in Akrotiri in Cyprus fly regularly over Gaza. More than 300 surveillance flights have been recorded, allegedly in search of Hamas-held hostages. Questions are also being asked if Israel acted lawfully by intercepting the ship Madleen in international waters, containing Greta Thunberg and 11 other campaigners seeking to highlight the blockade of food into Gaza. The Freedom Flotilla Coalition , the group operating the UK-flagged Madleen, said all 12 campaigners were 'being processed and transferred into the custody of Israeli authorities'. The Foreign Office has not commented.
Daily Mirror
31 minutes ago
- Daily Mirror
Greta Thunberg flown home from Israel after 'refusing to watch October 7 video'
Greta Thunberg has been pictured on a plane as she left Israel after being detained along with other activists onboard the Madleen which was heading for Gaza. The aid boat carrying Thunberg and other activists arrived at an Israeli port Monday after the country's forces stopped and detained them — enforcing a longstanding blockade of the Palestinian territory that has been tightened during the Israel-Hamas war. It is claimed that she and other activisits refused to watch footage of Hamas atrocities carried out on October 7, 2023 in Israel. Eight of the 12 activists refused to sign deportation papers and are still being detained in Israel, but Thunberg and three others agreed to sign the documents. The Madleen, accompanied by Israel's navy, had arrived in the Israeli port of Ashdod on Monday evening, according to Israel's Foreign Ministry. It published a photo on social media of Thunberg after disembarking. , , , , or visit homepage.
